209 pacific avenue - winnipeg · 2019-11-07 · winnipeg continued to occupy a central role in the...

209 PACIFIC AVENUE

JOHNSTONE BLOCK (KUO MIN TANG BUILDING)

City of Winnipeg Historical Buildings & Resources Committee

Researcher: M. Peterson May 2019

This building embodies the following heritage values as described in the Historical Resources By-law, 55/2014 (consolidated update July 13, 2016):

(a) This building is one of a dwindling number of buildings dating to the early 20th century development of Winnipeg’s Chinatown district;

(b) It has been associated, especially after 1930, with various Chinese-based clubs,

institutions and organizations; (c) It was designed by local architect Frank R. Evans and built by local contractor A.J.

Bonnett; (d) It is designed in the Two-Part Commercial Style, an often-used style found throughout the

downtown ; (e) It is a modestly conspicuous building within its downtown neighbourhood; and (f) Much of the building’s exterior has suffered little alteration.

209 PACIFIC AVENUE – JOHNSTONE BLOCK (KUO MIN TANG BUILDING)

In 1877, three Chinese immigrants stepped off a stagecoach from the U.S. to settle in Winnipeg and

start a laundry business. The event was reported in the local newspapers and marked the beginning

of the city’s oriental community. For much of the late 19th century, this community was comprised

of families operating laundries and other small businesses and living above or behind their shops.

Spread out throughout the downtown and suburbs, it would be several decades before the

population began to concentrate and create Winnipeg’s Chinatown.1

The development of Chinatown in downtown Winnipeg took place in the 1905-1910 period; in

1910 one block in the Alexander/Logan avenues area was occupied entirely by Chinese businesses,

a Masonic Lodge (Chee Kung Tong), residences and boarding houses.2 By World War I,

Chinatown had expanded outwards from its King Street/Alexander Avenue centre and by 1920,

there were 900 people of Chinese background in the city operating 150 laundries, three restaurants,

eight grocery stores and three greenhouses.3 Chinatown now occupied several more blocks and

continued its physical expansion and the community’s evolution well into the 1920s. Other

businesses and organizations flourished in this environment, including a chapter of the Chinese

Nationalist Party (Kuomintong) and a Presbyterian Church-sponsored “Chinese Mission.”4

The 1930s and 1940s saw a decline in the numbers of Chinese in Winnipeg as well as the re-

introduction of non-Chinese businesses back into Chinatown, although the actual Chinese

community formed stronger ties because of international events, most dramatic being the Japanese

invasion of China in 1937. After World War II, there was a major reduction in the number of

Chinese living in Chinatown, as many of the established families chose to live elsewhere in the city.

1 Winnipeg Chinatown: The Revitalization of a Community (Winnipeg, MB: Winnipeg Chinatown

Development (1981) Corporation, 1988), pp. 10-12. 2 Ibid., pp. 4-9. This increase was in spite of several discriminatory acts passed by the federal government

including head taxes and immigration limits specifically targeting the Chinese. 3 P. Yee, Chinatown. An Illustrated History of the Chinese Communities of Victoria, Vancouver, Calgary,

Winnipeg, Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal, and Halifax (Toronto, ON: James Lorimer and Company, 2005), pp. 66-68.

4 Ibid., pp. 10-26.

2

Adding to the numbers were newly arriving immigrants, who took advantage of the removal of the

racially discriminating immigration legislation in the late 1960s.

The cohesiveness and political clout of this group was tested in the late 1960s when City Council

announced plans to route the Disraeli Freeway through Chinatown and demolish many of its

buildings. A Chinese delegation met with Council and the plans were halted, leading to the

organization of the Winnipeg Chinatown Development Corporation in 1971 to oversee renewal in

the area. Since then, Core Area Initiatives and other government-sponsored funding programs have

assisted in the construction of seniors’ housing and several commercial developments and

Chinatown has once again become one of Winnipeg’s well-known neighbourhoods.5

In 1910, local real estate agents James and Robert Johnstone built a mixed use block in the heart of

the burgeoning Chinatown, mid-block on the north side of Pacific Avenue between Main and King

streets, naming it after themselves (Plate 1).

STYLE

This building is an excellent example of a Two-Part Commercial Style structure, very common

throughout the downtown regions of most North American cities. Especially popular after 1900, the

design was used to reflect the varied activities housed in the different areas of the building. The

ground floor held the retail spaces, often with recessed entrances and large display windows. A

metal cornice or similar feature was used to visually separate the ground floor from the upper floors,

which often included banks of large windows to light the office and/or residential space. Access to

this upper floor was often provided by an ornate entrance on the front façade.

Beyond this basic layout, this type of block saw a tremendous variation in materials and

ornamentation. They could be small, simple wooden structures or large, multi-storey brick and

stone buildings with a wealth of ornamental elements, often depending on the neighbourhood in

which they were located and the amount of money available to the developer. The use of

5 Ibid., pp. 24-38.

3

classically-based ornamental detailing, including arches, window and door accents and roof

detailing make the Johnstone Block more intricately designed than many of its contemporary

structures.

CONSTRUCTION

Completed in 1910 at a cost of $27,000,6 this two-storey building measures approximately 22.0

metres wide by 21.7 metres deep including a 1.8-metre one-storey rear section running the full

width of the structure (Plate 2). The solid brick structure rests on a stone foundation and glass

blocks and ornamental tin are also used on the exterior (see Appendix I for more construction

detail).

DESIGN

According to the original plans, the front (south) façade of the building was symmetrically

designed with a centrally-placed main entrance finished by a transom window with the words

“JOHNSTONE BLOCK” (Plate 3). Flanking this opening were smaller recessed doorways with

similar openings at either end of the façade. Filling much of the remainder of the main floor

were large display windows for the retail shops found within. Glass block or prism glass

transom windows and ornamental tin covered the ceiling of the recessed areas. A complete

metal entablature, with a curved pediment above the main entrance, divided the first and second

floors. The upper storey featured square headed openings, paired in the centre and four larger

units with large central and smaller side windows at the east and west ends. The upper storey

openings were set under brick arches, joined between the windows by attached brick pendants

which were repeated under the entablature of the ground floor. The building was completed by a

second metal cornice with stone capped brick parapet.

Today, the front façade is a mixed of original and altered elements, the display windows are open

at the east end and boarded over at the west end of the ground floor (as is the western-most

6 City of Winnipeg Building Permit, #1807/1901.

4

door). The glass block section is covered at the east end but uncovered at the west end (Plate 4).

Some of the original ornamental tin is also visible (Plate 5), as is some of the tile flooring of the

recessed entrances (Plate 6). The central entrance to the second storey still features its modest

tin accenting (Plate 7). The upper floors have not been significantly changed and the entire

façade has been painted on several occasions (Plates 8-11).

The rear (north) façade includes both windows and doors on both floors, second floor openings

being arched (Plates 12). The east façade is windowless (Plate 13); the west only a few window

openings (Plate 14). Old painted signage is found at the south end of the east façade (Plate 15).

INTERIOR

Little is known about the original interior of this building; it appears from contemporary lists that

the ground floor was used for retail, the upper floors for offices until the 1930s when residential

space was listed on the second floor.

Access could not be gained to the second floor or the west side of the ground floor. The suites on

the east end exhibit high ceilings covered in beautifully-detailed ornamental tin (Plates 16-18).

INTEGRITY

The building stands on its original location but has suffered from neglect and aging and appears

to be in poor structural condition for its age. Alterations have affected the appearance of the

main façade, although some of the original design, ornamentation and materials are present in

some areas.

STREETSCAPE

The streetscape near this block has significantly changed over the years, with older neighbouring

structures removed, replaced by newer buildings (Plate 19).

5

ARCHITECT/CONTRACTORS

The architect of this building was local designer Frank R. Evans (ca.1865-1949). Evans was born in

Wales and practiced in Regina, Saskatchewan before coming to Winnipeg. He designed many fine

buildings in Winnipeg prior to his retirement in 1934 (see Appendix II for additional biographical

information). This is the first Evans’ design evaluated by the Historical Buildings and Resources

Committee.

Local builder A.J. Bonnett is listed as the contractor of the block.

PERSON/INSTITUTION

James and Robert Johnstone, real estate agents, built this block as a rental property and

continued to own it into the 1940s, although representatives of the late James Johnstone were

listed as owners in the late 1920s.7 Little is known about the pair, they are only named in one

other City of Winnipeg Building Permit between 1899 and 1926, a small commercial structure.8

Other owners of the block included: Chinese Nationalist League of Canada (owner and

occupant) – 1947-1951; Frank Chan, agent and Thomas Gain Gin, restaurateur – 1946-1947 and

1952-1953; T.G. Gin, Richard Tyson, retired and Fook Toy Wong, cashier (owner and occupant)

– 1954-1956; F.T. Wong et al (owner and occupant) – 1959-1968; Ton Quong, Louis Pak Tong

and Thomas Jin Qjon – 1973-1981; and Kuo Min Tang Association of Manitoba Incorporated

(owner and occupant) – 1982-1991.9

A partial list of tenants of the building can be found in Table 1 below. Many of the early tenants

were connected to the trade in furs and wools, Western Canada’s first industry. Beginning with the

Hudson’s Bay Company in the 17th century, the activity was responsible for the early exploration

and permanent settlement of the entire West. By the 1880s, the sector had evolved, utilizing

improved transportation – the transcontinental railway system in both the United States and Canada

7 City of Winnipeg Assessment Rolls, Roll No. 800980, Ward 2 (old no. 12431), below as ARo, 1900-1950. 8 City of Winnipeg Building Permit Ledger Books, 1899-1926. 9 ARo, 1920-1991.

6

– to efficiently move raw hides and furs from the West to markets and manufacturers in the East.

Winnipeg continued to occupy a central role in the trade, headquarters to fur auction houses, hide

dealers and retail fur companies. One of the most influential and a tenant of the Johnstone Block in

the 1940s and 1950s was the A.B. Shubert Fur Company, founded in Chicago, Illinois (Plate 20). 10

TABLE 1 TENANTS, 209-215 PACIFIC AVENUE, 1912-199711

YEAR INFORMATION 1912 209- Vacant

211- F. Matthews, barber shop 211½- no list of tenants 211½- Lutheran Book Company 213-215- ABC Café, H. Luttroff, proprietor

1916 209- not listed 211½- 2 suites listed: #5- Acme Commission Company & James Guthrie, electrical

supplies; and #8- Lutheran Book Company 213- ABC Café

1929 209- Otto Silverman, raw furs, H. Cohen, manager 211- M.H. Levinson and Company Ltd., raw furs, M.H. Levinson, manager 211- Harry Genske (no description) 211½- 3 suites: #2- Koz Brothers (Isaac & Morris), wholesale jobbers; #7- Dominion

Novelty Company; and #7 Acme Commission Company 213-215-A.B. Shubert Ltd., raw furs, B.A. Cortilet, Sr., manager

1935 209- Kuo Min Tang & Chinese Nationalist League 211- not listed 211½- 3 suites: Winnipeg Jobbers and Manufacturers’ Agents, Winnipeg Fur & Hide

Company and Acme Commission Company 213-215- Koz Brothers, wholesale jobbers

1940 209- Kuo Min Tang & Chinese Nationalist League 211- M.H. Levinson and Company Ltd., raw furs 211½- 5 suites, 3 residential, Winnipeg Fur & Hide Company and Acme Commission

Company 213-215- A.B. Shubert Ltd., raw furs

10 Arthur J. Ray, The Canadian Fur Trade in the Industrial Age (Toronto, ON: University of Toronto Press,

1990), p. 70. The A.B. Schubert Company of Chicago, Illinois, was, at this time, one of the largest mail-order fur-buying companies in Western Canada.

11 Henderson’s Directory, 1910-2000.

7

YEAR INFORMATION 1945 209- Kuo Min Tang & Chinese Nationalist League

211- Rosenthal Fur Company 211½- 6 suites, 3 residential, Wong Wun Sun Travel Company, Winnipeg Fur &

Hide Company and Acme Commission Company 213-215- A.B. Shubert Ltd., raw furs

1954 209- Kuo Min Tang & Chinese Nationalist League 211- Vacant 211½- 5 suites, 4 residential and Wong Wun Sun Travel Society, Charlie Wong,

secretary 213-215- A.B. Shubert Ltd., raw furs

1962 209- Yuen Yuen Grocery 211- Vacant 211½- 8 residential suites and #2- Ling-You Club 213-215-Kuo Min Tang (Chinese Nationalist League) The Chinese Masonic Temple is located across the street at #216 Pacific Avenue

1976 209- Hop Wah Grocery 211- Winnipeg Help-All Employment Agency 211½- 8 suites, all residential 213-215- Vacant

1984 209-211- Yee’s Grocery 211½- Leong Yue Club 213- Chinese Dramatic Society & Chinese Nationalist League 215- Chinese Benevolent Association

1997 209-211½- 5 vacant suites listed 213- office building (8 suites) – Chinese Benevolent Association, Manitoba Chinese

Cultural Association Incorporated & Prairie Chinese News of Canada

EVENT

There is no known significant historical event connected with this building.

CONTEXT

This block was built during the height of the early 20th century expansion phase of Winnipeg.

Dozens of similar mixed-use blocks were built throughout the city by small-, medium- and large-

scale developers and businessmen who translated their own financial success into building

development. Having no shortage of demand for commercial and residential space in all corners of

8

the city and surrounding municipalities made this type of investment extremely popular until World

War I.

This block also became an important structure in the development of Winnipeg’s Chinatown and

has housed clubs, businesses and people for many decades.

LANDMARK

This building’s conspicuousness lies mostly in the bright exterior paint that has been used over the

last several decades. Although it stands fairly close to Main Street, it is now hidden by a large

newer structure.

APPENDIX I

CITY OF WINNIPEG - Preliminary Report

Assessment Record

Building Address: 209 Pacific Avenue (209-215) Building Name: Johnstone Block Original Use: mixed (commercial/residential) Current Use: mixed (commercial/residential) Roll No. (Old): 13080098000 (12431) RSN: 155144 Legal Description: 9/11 St. John, Plan 32065, Lot 32 (Original: 10W St. John, Plan 3658, Parcel B and east 25’

Parcel C) Location: North side between Main and King streets Date of Construction: 1910 Storeys: 2 and 1 storeys and basement Heritage Status: ON NOMINATED LIST Construction Type: Brick and stone foundation Building Permits (Plans available: [M] Microfilm; [PPD] Department Storage):

- 1807/1910 [PPD] $27,000 (original); 290/1958 [PPD] $200 (new fire escape for club); 7018/1963 [M] $1,500 (alteration to basement); 5908/1994 $2,000 (alter interior of club building)

Information: - 71 x 72 + ~37’ - ornamental tin cladding on ceilings of recessed entrances ARCHITECT: EVANS, FRANK R. CONTRACTOR: BONNETT, A.J.

--- PACIFIC AVENUE ---

N

72’

2 STOREYS

1 STOREY

6’

71’

APPENDIX II Frank Robert Evans F.R. Evans was born in Wales ca.1865, and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts Degree from

Dublin University in 1884. He moved to London, England and took up the study of architecture

in his father’s office, remaining there until 1888. He decided to emigrate and arrived in

Winnipeg, although his stay was short, moving on to Regina, Saskatchewan, where he practiced

until his return to Winnipeg in 1896.1 He established his practice here in 1901-1902, which

continued until his retirement in 1934. He died at his home at 461 Heatherington Avenue on

May 9, 1949.2

Some of his larger contracts included:3 WINNIPEG - Foley, Lock and Larson Warehouse, 181-189 Market Avenue (1903, demolished) - Great West Saddlery Factory, 112 Market Avenue (1903 addition) - Paulin-Chamber Company Building, 311 Ross Avenue (1904 & 1910) - Leland Hotel, 222 William Avenue, (1904 additional storeys and remodelling of existing

building) - Brydon Chambers Apartments, 150 Rupert Avenue (1904, demolished) - A. Hollinquist House, Logan Avenue southeast corner Ellen Street (1904, demolished) - Dufferin Avenue Presbyterian Church, Dufferin Avenue at McGregor Street (1905,

demolished) - Orris Apartments, Elgin Avenue, 1905 - Tabernacle Baptist Church, Burrows Avenue at Charles Street (1906, demolished) - Charles A. Baskerville House, Donald Street (1906) - D. Ackland and Sons Warehouse, Higgins Avenue (1907, demolished) - Duncan D. McOuat House, Balmoral Place (1907) - Leslie Storage Warehouse, 83 Kate Street (1909 & large addition 1912) - Johnstone Block, 209 Pacific Avenue (1910) - Somerset Building, 294 Portage Avenue (1911) - Enright Block, 189 Jarvis Avenue (833 Main Street) (1911) - Gordon Harold Aikins House, 69 Langside Street (1911, demolished) 1 John Chivers, “A History of The Manitoba Association of Architects,: unpublished manuscript, ca.1966. 2 Winnipeg Free Press, May 11, 1949, p. 33. 3 City of Winnipeg Building Permit Ledger Books, 1899-1926; and Robert G. Hill, Biographical Dictionary

of Architects in Canada, 1800-1950, 2009-2012.

WINNIPEG (continued) - Exchange Hotel, Main Street (1917, demolished) - Manitoba Gypsum Company Warehouse, St. James Street near Sargent Avenue (1917) - R.S. Robinson Company Warehouse, Louise Avenue (1919) - St. John’s (Olympic) Skating Rink, Church Avenue (1922, demolished) - Gregg Building, 52 Albert Street (1922, additional floor) - I.O.O.F. Hall, 74 Princess Street (1930, interior fire repairs)4

NON-WINNIPEG - Regina Leader Building, Hamilton Street (1893) - Moosomin, Saskatchewan Town Hall and general hospital (1905) - public schools in Manitoba: Elm Creek (1905), Shoal Lake (1906), Grandview (1906),

Headingley (1906), Stonewall (1907), Darlingford (1910) and Portage la Prairie (Victoria, 1916-1917)

- Sanford, Manitoba Municipal Hall (1905) - Broadview, Saskatchewan public school (1907) - Yorkton, Saskatchewan hotel (1907) - Clement Block, Rosser Avenue at Ninth Street, Brandon, Manitoba (1910) - St. Andrew’s, Manitoba Municipal Hall (1910) - St. John's Roman Catholic Church, Portage la Prairie, Manitoba (1913-1914) - Young Women's Christian Association, Eleventh Street, Brandon, Manitoba (1917)

4 According to a website on the I.O.O.F. Hall, 74 Princess Street

(http://www.ioofmanitoba.ca/74_princess_ave.htm), Evans was hired as the architect to design interior repairs to the building after a January 1930 fire.


Plate 1 – Johnstone Block (Kuo Min Tang Building), 209 Pacific Avenue, front (south) and west

façades, 2019. (M. Peterson, 2019.)

Plate 2 – Johnstone Block (Kuo Min Tang Building), 209 Pacific Avenue, rear (north) and west



Plate 3 – Architect’s plans #1807/1910, “Front Elevation”. (Courtesy of the City of Winnipeg

Archives.)


Plate 4 – Johnstone Block (Kuo Min Tang Building), 209 Pacific Avenue, west end of front

(south) façade, 2019. (M. Peterson, 2019.)

Plate 5 – Johnstone Block (Kuo Min Tang Building), 209 Pacific Avenue, west end of front

façade, 2019. (M. Peterson, 2019.)


Plate 6 – Johnstone Block (Kuo Min Tang Building), 209 Pacific Avenue, tile flooring in

recessed entrance to #211, 2019. (M. Peterson, 2019.)


Plate 7 – Johnstone Block (Kuo Min Tang Building), 209 Pacific Avenue, detail of front (south)

entrance, 2019. (M. Peterson, 2019.)

Plate 8 – Johnstone Block (Kuo Min Tang Building), 209 Pacific Avenue, detail of front (south)



Plate 9 – Johnstone Block, 209-215 Pacific Avenue, front (south) and west façades, ca.1950.

(Reproduced from riseandsprawl.blogspot.com, “Building weaker communities”, January 14, 2009.)

http://riseandsprawl.blogspot.com/2009_01_01_archive.html

http://riseandsprawl.blogspot.com/2009_01_01_archive.html


Plate 10 – Johnstone Block (Kuo Min Tang Building), 209-215 Pacific Avenue, ca.1979. (City

of Winnipeg.)

Plate 11 – Johnstone Block (Kuo Min Tang Building), 209-215 Pacific Avenue, 2002. (M.

Peterson, 2002.)


Plate 12 – Johnstone Block (Kuo Min Tang Building), 209 Pacific Avenue, rear (north) façade,

2019. (M. Peterson, 2019.)

Plate 13 – Johnstone Block (Kuo Min Tang Building), 209 Pacific Avenue, front (south) and east



Plate 14 – Johnstone Block (Kuo Min Tang Building), 209 Pacific Avenue, rear (north) and west


Plate 15 – Johnstone Block (Kuo Min Tang Building), 209 Pacific Avenue, painted signage on

the east façade, 2019. (M. Peterson, 2019.)


Plate 16 – Johnstone Block (Kuo Min Tang Building), 209 Pacific Avenue, tin ceiling, #211

Pacific Avenue, 2019. (M. Peterson, 2019.)



Pacific Avenue, 2019. (M. Peterson, 2019.)


Pacific Avenue,, 2019. (M. Peterson, 2019.)


Plate 19 – Pacific Avenue looking west from Main Street, 2019. (M. Peterson, 2019.)


Plate 20 – Page from the A.B. Shubert Limited, “Supply Catalogue and the Art of Trapping,”

(Winnipeg, MB: A.B. Shubert Ltd., 1923), n.p. (Reproduced from University of Alberta Libraries, Peel’s Prairie Provinces, Peel No. 10347, http://peel.library.ualberta.ca/ bibliography/10347/1.html.)

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